Positive Psychology
About Positive Psychology
“Positive psychology is the scientific study of positive human functioning and flourishing on multiple levels that include the biological, personal, relational, institutional, cultural, and global dimensions of life” (Seligman & Csikszentmihalyi, 2000).
Positive psychology is founded on the belief that people want to lead meaningful and fulfilling lives, to cultivate what is best within themselves, and to enhance their experiences of love, work, and play.
Dimensions of Positive Psychology
According to Seligman & Csikszentmihalyi (2000), Positive psychology focuses on three broad areas of human experience that reflect positive perspective:
At the subjective level positive psychology looks at Positive Subjective States, or positive emotions such as happiness, joy, satisfaction with life, relaxation, love, intimacy, and contentment. Positive subjective states also include constructive thoughts about the self and the future, such as optimism and hope, as well as feelings of energy, vitality, and confidence, and the effects of positive emotions.
At the individual level, positive psychology focuses on Positive Individual Traits, or the more positive behavioral patterns seen in people over time. This includes the study of the strengths and virtues, such as the capacity for love and work, courage, compassion, resilience, creativity, curiosity, integrity, self-knowledge, moderation, self-control, and wisdom. It also includes the study of talents, skills and interests, the ability to develop aesthetic sensibility or to tap into creative potential, as well as the drive to pursue excellence.
Last, at the group or societal level, positive psychology focuses on the development, creation, and maintenance of Positive Institutions. This focus area is concerned with the development, creation, and maintenance of structures of social order that govern the standards and behaviors of a set of individuals in a way that contributes to greater individual and institutional well-being. Understanding positive institutions entails the study of the strengths that foster healthy work environments, healthy families, better communities and schools. It also addresses social justice, the development of civic virtues, responsibility, parenting, nurturance, work ethic, leadership, teamwork, purpose, and tolerance.